Pattern mechanism



June 30, 1953 E. s1. PIERRE PATTERN MECHANISM Filed 001:. 25, 1949 Fatented June 30, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PATTERN MECHANISM Eugene St. Pierre, Pawtucket, R. I., assignor to Hemphill Company, Central Falls, R. I., a corporation of Massachusetts Application October 25, 1949, Serial No. 123,318

. 1 Claim.

This invention relates to a new and useful improvement in pattern discs for pattern drums of circular, independent needle, knitting machines.

Certain machines of this type particularly Banner machines are provided with pattern drums by means of which needles, sinkers or jacks are caused to be selected so that they will become positioned differently from the positions of other similar instrumentalities for special types of operation such as wrapping or reverse plating. Such pattern drums are cylindrical in shape and adapted to receive around their periphery a series of butt bearing discs. By breaking out certain butts from each disc, levers associated therewith may be operated and these in turn will cause the special operation of the instrumentality involved which is required to carry out the special work being done.

Heretofore, the butts have been formed by slitting radially the outer edge of the disc so that a given number of identical solid butts has resulted. The customary mode of operation has been that one move of the drum by means of a well known pawling mechanism will result in a partial rotation of each disc to the arcuate extent of one butt so that at a given point a given butt is replaced by the succeeding butt.

It sometimes happens that the lever operated by these butts is so pivoted that, if it has been riding upon a butt and then passes into a recess caused by breaking out the following butt, it will engage the next succeeding butt at least to an extent which will prevent the lever from reaching the bottom of the recess. Consequently, it has been the practice to bevel by hand filing the corner of the succeeding butt responsible for this difficulty with the resulting waste of considerabie time and labor. pattern disc of this invention, one form of which is shown in the drawings of which:

Fig. l is a plan view of a pattern disc;

Figs. 2, 3 and 4 are diagrammatic illustrations of the manner in which it operates;

Fig. 5 is also a diagrammatic illustration of the relation between two discs and the two corresponding levers;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary top view of a pattern drum, pattern disc and ratchet mechanism used in one embodiment of the invention.

As shown in Fig. 1, the pattern disc is a flat annular ring i around the outer edge of which has been formed, by radial slotting as shown at 2 and E, a series of butts 3 of equal width. These butts are arranged in groups 3 consisting of pairs such as butts 4 and 5. Preferably, the

This is avoided by the 1 slots 5 which separate the two butts in each pair are narrower than the slots 2 which separate the pairs so as to retain as much strength as possible in the individual butts and also to make each pair of butts readily distinguishable so that no confusion will arise when breaking butts to form a pattern.

The rings l are mounted on a drum H which is turned through ratchet teeth 12 by pawl it. The teeth i2 are integral with the drum I I, while the pawl 83 is mounted on a plate it which is movable with relation to the drum i l in response to a pulling action from rod i5. The operation of this particular mechanism is explained in more detail in U. S. Patent No. 2,351,758. There are half as many teeth I? on the ratchet as there are butts on the ring I so that a turn of one step of the drum covers an are substantially equal to the area occupied by two butts on the ring.

One type of butt operated lever is shown at .l in Fig. 5. Since it is pivoted as at 8, its end 9, which engages the pattern disc, will swing in a considerable are when it passes into a recess resulting from the breaking out of a pair of butts. As shown in Fig. 2, a lever i may be supported by a single butt 4. In this figure the recess it between the butt 4 and the dotted butt 5 results from the breaking out of a pair of butts. If the pattern drum and, consequently, the pattern discs are rotated one step in the direction indicated by the arrow, the butt l will move to the position shown in Fig. 3 and will release lever l. However, the consequent swinging motion of lever 7 causes its end 9 to move in the other direction so that, if the butt 5 (Fig. 2) were intact, it would strike it and fail to pass into the recess. This is What has happened in the past when solid butts equal to one step of the pattern drum were used and which necessitated the filing off of the near side of the interiering butt. Tln'eugh this invention such interference is eliminated by breaking out the half butt 5', as shown in Fig. 3, so that end 3 of lever l is now able to pass fully into the space and at the same time the remaining butt of the pair 45 will function as a butt to support lever l on the next move of the pattern drum as shown in Fig. 4.

It will be understood, of course, that the example just shown is for descriptive purposes only and that butts will be broken as required by the desired pattern. However, in every instance the proper operation of levers i will be insured by breaking out the'near butt of the next working pair. At the same time, no confusion is caused by this arrangement because the width of the slots between the pairs of butts is considerably wider than that between the individual butts of each pair so that they can be readily distinguished.

I claim:

In a circular, independent needle, knitting machine, the combination of a pattern drum adapted to be turned in substantially equal steps, means for turning said drum one step at a time; a plurality of radially extending removable butts mounted around the outer perimeter of said drum, adjacent ones of said butts being arranged perimeter of said drum an are substantially equal to the angular distance turned by said drum in one of said steps, each of said butts bein frangible from said drum, and a lever so pivoted that a component of its motion is opposed to the direction in which said drum is turnable, said lever being adapted to be operated by said butts.

W EUGENE STQPIERRE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date seagqv White July 14, 1908 2 '0. .2.;'1-'Z p 9 2,318,315, Minton June 12, 1945 

